Accordingly, the province has been studying the investment plan for upgrading and expanding existing BOT traffic projects as the arising part of previously signed contracts and recalculating a financial plan.

However, because the project has been implemented since the early 2000s, the calculation of a comprehensive financial plan for the arising and existing parts has not been detailed in the Law on Investment under the public-private partnership method, Decree No. 35/2021/ND-CP of the Government and related documents.

At the same time, the existing investors of the above BOT projects proposed a plan to convert the value implemented in existing contracts from the early 2000s to 2024 and calculate it into the total investment capital of the project as a basis for calculating the financial plan. Because the conversion of cash flow value and the method of calculating the comprehensive financial plan have not been regulated and guided in the law on PPP. 

Mr. Huy requested the competent authority to provide guidance on calculating the financial plan as mentioned above.

On this issue, the Ministry of Planning and Investment (now the Ministry of Finance) has the following comments:

According to the provisions of Point b, Clause 1, Article 18 and Point c, Clause 1, Article 24 of the Law on Investment under the Public-Private Partnership method, one of the cases of adjusting the investment policy and adjusting the project is when the planning, policies and relevant laws change and directly affect the objectives, location and scale of the project.

On this issue, according to the provisions of Clauses 2 and 3, Article 48 of the Road Law 2024 (effective from January 1, 2025), for projects that have been invested in under a signed agreement with the investor on the expansion and upgrading of expressways or roads in operation, upgrading to expressways according to one of the following options:

- The investor proposes to adjust the investment project for expansion and upgrading;

- The State organizes the establishment of investment projects for expansion and upgrading under the public-private partnership method.

In case of reaching an agreement with the investor, the competent authority shall carry out procedures for adjusting the investment policy and investment project according to the provisions of the Law on Investment under the PPP method and organize negotiations with the existing investor to adjust the contract.

Therefore, in case the project proposes to upgrade or expand the scale of the expressway or road in operation, it is recommended to carry out procedures for adjusting the investment policy and investment project according to the provisions of the Law on PPP.

If necessary, Mr. Huy is requested to discuss with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Construction for detailed instructions on the project's financial plan.